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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: saw · press · rest · cabinet · lie · cell · chest · coach

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. press — to push
  3. chest — of your body
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. cell — a phone
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cell — in biology
  10. lie — to recline
  11. chest — a box
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. press — newspapers
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. saw — the tool
  18. press — a publisher
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rest — what's left
  21. chest — of your body
  22. saw — the tool
  23. rest — a break
  24. lie — an untruth

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com